USA > Wisconsin > Wisconsin, its story and biography, 1848-1913, Volume VII > Part 18
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Mr. Van Zile is a New Yorker, having been born at Green Point, now a part of Brooklyn. November 11, 1861, and is a son of Abraham and Harriet (Wilcox) Van Zile. His father, who was born in Holland, emigrated to the United States in young manhood and became a fore- man in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, where he worked as a carpenter for more than a quarter of a century. In 1872, just after the Chicago fire, Mr. Van Zile went with his family to that city, and there took an active part in the rebuilding of the great Illinois metropolis, but his sudden death occurred in 1873, at a time when it appeared that he
1897
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was to realize a handsome fortune from a number of his contracts. Prior to coming to Chicago, Mr. Van Zile had traded some property in the East for a farm in Marquette county, Wisconsin, and after his death his children, consisting of several boys and a younger sister journeyed to the property, on which they resided about one year. William Van Zile in the meantime learned the trade of harness maker at Packwaukee, Wisconsin, and worked thereat for three years, at the end of which period he left for Stevens Point, where he worked at har- ness trade and then with his brother Charles started for Metonga Lake. Upon reaching Shawano, they changed their minds and purchased a boat from a Mr. Kast, for three dollars, and started down the Wolf river, at Packwaukee, on the Fox river purchased a sail boat, and then pro- ceeded down the Wisconsin river to the Mississippi, and down that stream to St. Louis, in the meantime being engaged in hunting and fish- ing, this cruise consuming about one year. At that time an older brother, Abraham Van Zile, was engaged in logging at Rice Lake, and to that point the two younger brothers made their way, this being located about eight miles southwest of the present site of Crandon. Subse- quently they came to the woods which now have been succeeded by the city, and built a log house on what is known as Sand Lake, entering quite a strip of land, which was cleared and devoted to agricultural pursuits. With two or three others, Mr. Van Zile then organized a town, then known as Carpenter, which at that time was in Shawano county. At that time hay cut in the summer could be sold for twenty- five dollars a ton, and this occupied Mr. Van Zile's attention for some time, but later he embarked in the hotel business, erecting his own estab- lishment, the lumber for which was shipped from Antigo. For the shipping of twelve thousand shingles from Pelican to Crandon he was forced to pay thirty dollars. Mr. Van Zile was also engaged in cruising, but eventually adopted the vocation of contracting in carpentry and masonry work, and since that time has erected numerous residence and business structures, not alone in Crandon but as far as Rhinelander. As a business man he has ever been known to be strictly reliable and thoroughly progressive and his associates have depended upon him for advice and leadership in matters of importance.
Mr. Van Zile was married in 1884 to Miss Fannie Stickney, of Antigo, Wisconsin, daughter of Edward Stickney, who came to Antigo prior to the advent of the railroad in 1880 and erected the first court house in that city. He is now deceased. Eight children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Van Zile, namely : Mary, Bessie, Edward, Ralph, Ernest, Ruth, Margaret and William, Jr.
A Republican in his political proclivities, Mr. Van Zile has fre- quently been the choice of his fellow-townsmen to represent them in offices of public responsibility and trust, and has at all times vindicated the confidence thus placed in him. He has served as clerk of the court,
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deputy county clerk, deputy sheriff and county coroner of Forest county, and on July 1, 1897, was appointed by President Mckinley to the office of postmaster of Crandon, which at that time was a fourth-class office. Since that time it has advanced to a third-class office and the business handled has increased greatly. Since the commencement of the postal service, the government has chosen for its postmasters only men of the strictest integrity, whose records in their personal ventures have been beyond reproach. Mr. Van Zile's sixteen years of service in this connection speak for themselves. He is well known fraternally, be- longing to the Masons, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, in which he has passed through all the chairs, the Modern Woodmen of America, in which he has held all of the offices, and the Mystic Workers of the World. His wide circle of friends testifies to his general popularity.
DARIUS J. MOREY. In the death of Darius J. Morey, which occurred at his home in Racine, on the 25th of November, 1909, the business and civic community lost a man whose achievements and character were among the best assets of Racine county. Mr. Morey had been identified with this part of Wisconsin throughout all his active career, for more than sixty years, and had gained a high position in local affairs. He was one of the self-made men of his time. In his early life, he faced obstacles and disadvantages in the poverty and privation caused by his father's early death, and he, for some years, was the chief support of the family. With these difficulties in acquiring a practical livelihood, he had to utilize every opportunity and all his spare time in gaining an education, and it was only after he had passed his majority, that he was able to supply these deficiencies. In spite of these conditions surrounding his early career, he soon attained a place of leadership, as a business man and was also identified with the best in social and civic life in his home city.
Darius J. Morey was born in St. Lawrence county at Morristown, New York, March 3, 1843, a son of John T. and Catherine (Styles) Morey. The Morey family is one of the oldest in Union history. Three brothers of the name came from England in 1626, and settled in Massa- chusetts. One branch of the family subsequently took the name of Morry, and the other the name of Morey. The late Mr. Morey, pa- ternal grandfather, was also named Darius J. and was born in the State of Vermont. By occupation he was a carpenter and builder, and also a designer or architect. In 1846 he came west to Wisconsin, along with other members of the family, and his death occurred at Racine in 1851, when he was seventy-four years of age. During his early life he had served as a soldier in the war of 1812. His wife, whose maiden name was Marian Fowler was a relative of the great phrenologist, Dr. Fowler. Her death occurred when she was fifty-four years of age, and she was the mother of five daughters and two sons.
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John T. Morey, father of the late Racine citizen, was a native of New York State, where he married Miss Catherine Styles. She was a daughter of John Styles, a native of England, who had been a sergeant in the British army, and had fought under Wellington at the Battle of Waterloo. After emigrating to America, this veteran had continued his military service in this country. From Montreal, Canada, he came and made settlement at Morristown, New York, where his death oc- curred when he had reached the unusual age of one hundred and five years. By trade he was a shoemaker. The wife of John Styles was Catherine McDonald, who also lived to a great age, attaining ninety- eight years, and even then, her death was the result of an accident, rather than old age. There were ten children in the Styles family.
John T. Morey and wife became the parents of four sons and two daughters, the last two survivors of these children being John T., Jr., and Darius J., both of whom were long residents of Racine. The father was by trade a carpenter and housebuilder. He had taken up his residence in Wisconsin in the Spring of 1846 and from Milwaukee moved to Racine, where for a number of years he followed this trade. He lived for a time in Southport, but then returned to Racine. He was greatly handicapped by ill health, and he finally gave up his occupa- tion in Racine, and removed to the Indian land in Waupaca county, with the intention of becoming a farmer, a vocation which it was hoped would restore his health. However, he passed away in December, 1856. His wife followed him in August, 1862, when thirty-eight years of age. Both were members of the Methodist Church.
Darius J. Morey, who was three years old when the family settled in Wisconsin, spent the years up to 1851 in Racine, and then accom- panied the family to the northern part of the state. The opportunities in that part of the state were then extremely limited, in schools and other facilities of civilization. This fact, together with the unsettled condition of the country, and the illness of his father prevented him from any regular attendance at school, and he was fourteen years of age before he had any chance to attend even the winter sessions, the summers all being spent in the hard work of the farm. On one point, however, he had received perhaps more than ordinary instructions, and that was in the Bible, his father having been a man of deep religious convictions, taking great care to instruct his children in the Bible.
At the age of eighteen, in 1861, Darins J. Morey returned to Ra- cine, and spent one winter in the high school. Previously, however, he had utilized his meagre opportunities of schooling so well that he had secured a certificate to teach, but the avenues of professional life, and the occupations which he most favored were still closed to him, because the immediate necessities of the family compelled him to re- main close by his carpenter's bench, and on the farm. The whole bur- den of the support of the family was placed upon him after the death
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of his father and for several years he had to employ all his strength and skill of his hands in order to provide for others than himself.
At the beginning of his early manhood, when he was just about to enter upon a career of independent business, the Civil war broke out, and Mr. Morey was one of the men of Wisconsin who gave his service for the preservation of the Union. His enlistment occurred August 22, 1863, when he became a private in Company C of the First Wisconsin Heavy Artillery, with which regiment he served with fidelity until the close of the war. He participated in many serious battles of the southern campaign and was in the two noted engagements at Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge.
After his honorable discharge, he returned to Racine, where in order to fit himself for a commercial career, he took a course in a business college, and began as an accountant, an occupation which he followed for twenty-three years. Nearly all of his work in this capicity was with the Fish Brothers Wagon Company. He finally bought an inter- est in the concern, but through a decision of the Supreme Court unfor- tunately lost his entire investment, and was thus practically thrown back at the beginning of his career. For several years afterwards, he was a salesman for the Racine Wagon & Carriage Company, and still later for the Fish Brothers Wagon Company. A second time he bought an interest in the latter business, but in the meantime it had been re- organized under new management. Throughout his career, Mr. Morey was a student, a man to whom knowledge made a strong appeal, not only for its intrinsic worth, but also because he had been obliged to work so hard to acquire all that he had. Along with other studies he had gained a fair knowledge of the law, and he was finally elected to the office of Justice of the Peace, in which he served for four years, and made an excellent record in this minor court. He also per- fected himself-in real estate, loan investments and insurance law, and it was in these lines of business that he engaged on the close of his term as justice. In 1900 he associated his son Wallace S. with him, and in 1903 the other son F. Arthur was also admitted to partnership, the firm title then becoming D. J. Morey & Sons. Mr. Morey continued his active connection with this prosperous enterprise until his death.
For six years, he served as a member of the Racine Board of Educa- tion, being its president for one year. In fraternal affairs, he was especially prominent in the Masonic Orders. His membership was with Belle City Lodge No. 92, A. F. & A. M .; Orient Chapter No. 12 R. A. M .; and Racine Commandery No. 7, K. T. For five years he was master of the blue lodge, high priest of the chapter three years and prelate of the commandery two years and generalissimo one year. His old associations with the Union army were renewed through his membership with Governor Harvery Post, G. A. R. of which he was Commander at the time of his death. In politics he was a Republican,
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and he and his wife were earnest members of the First Congregational Church of Racine, he having been a Trustee of this Church.
At 943 Superior street, Racine, Mr. Morey had built in 1883 one of the attractive homes on that street. That was the center of his very happy domestic life, and there he was known at his best to his numerous friends. He was married on December 17th, 1868, to Miss Viola S. Packard, who was a daughter of Roswell and Susan (Bird) Packard. The three children of Mr. Morey and wife' were as follows : F. Arthur, Edith V. and Wallace S. The late Mr. Morey was a man of very temperate habits, having never used tobacco or strong drink throughout his career. With this ability to abstain from personal vices, he also united a strong positive character, and was a man whose deeds of practical righteousness were too numerous ever to be accounted for.
JOHN SCOTT EARLL. The legal profession has in John Scott Earll one of its ablest advocates in Prairie du Chien, and his position in this community as a rising young attorney is already well established. His work has given much promise of distinctive achievements at no far distant time, and he is fast forging to the front in the ranks of his pro- fession in this county.
Born in Richland county, Wisconsin, on February 14, 1875, John Scott Earll is the son of Daniel and Charlotte (Johnson) Earll, both natives of New York. Daniel Earll came to the state of Wisconsin in 1848, locating in Richland county at once, and here becoming engaged in the farming industry. He continued in the same successfully and prominently until death claimed him in 1903, the mother having pre- ceded him in 1902. The early life of Daniel Earll was spent as a sailor on the ocean, in the whale boat service. Ten children were born to him and his wife, six of whom are living today, and of whom the subject is the tenth and last in order of birth.
Up to his fifteenth year John Scott Earll attended the common schools, after which he entered the Sextonville high school, from which he was graduated in 1893. Three years later he entered the State Normal School at Plattsville, Wisconsin, graduating therefrom with the class of 1899. He taught school for two years after his graduation, after which he entered the law department of the University of Wis- consin, and was graduated from that well known institution with the class of 1904, receiving his well earned degree of LL. B. at that time.
Very soon thereafter the young lawyer entered upon the practice of his profession at Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, where he has since continued in active practice, and where he has already won a reputa- tion that augurs well for his future success. Mr. Earll has given valuable service to his community as a member of the school board, and served as district attorney of Crawford county for four years. He is a Republican and was chairman of the Republican county committee
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for the last six years, as well as having done most praiseworthy cam- paign work for the party as a stump speaker and orator.
Mr. Earll was married on Christmas Day, 1900, to Miss Ona Ben- nett of Vernon county, Wisconsin.
WILLIAM H. WOODARD. In the practice of law at Watertown, since 1896, with offices in the Bank of Watertown building, William H. Woodard is a native of that city, and has gained a successful place in his profession.
Born at Watertown, Dodge county, Wisconsin, September 21, 1872, he is a son of Marshall J. and Mary (Spaulding) Woodard. The father was born and reared in New Hampshire, and the mother in Maine. The respective families settled in New England, during the colonial days. During the decade of the fifties, the parents came out to Wisconsin, and settled on a farm in Dodge county. From the coun- try, Marshall Woodard moved to Watertown, and in a modest way took up the manufacture of crackers and confectionery. The pioneer in that line of enterprise at Watertown, then a small village he kept ex- panding his business and continued it for forty years, the late Jesse Stone later becoming associated with him under the name of Woodard & Stone. He has for many years been a stockholder in the Bank of Watertown, a vice-president in its executive board, and for a score of years has been interested in the lumber business.
The third of four sons, William H. Woodard, grew up in Water- town, attended the public schools until sixteen years old, then entered Beloit Academy and prepared for his college career in Beloit College. Mr. Woodard is a member of the class of 1894 at Beloit, graduating Ph. B. and later attaining the degree of Master of Arts. In 1896 he grad- uated LL. B. from the law department of the University of Wisconsin, was admitted to the bar in the same year, and has since had his office and has been attending to the duties of a growing patronage at Water- town. Mr. Woodard belongs to the Wisconsin Bar Association and the American Bar Association, is a Republican, and in Watertown at the present time is a member of the board of education.
On November 10, 1898, Mr. Woodard married Miss Ella S. Hart, who is a native of Wisconsin. Their three children are: Marshall J., William H., Jr., and Margaret.
CHARLES ESEMAN is a photographer in Waupaca. He is not in the class of the ordinary maker of pictures, but has a mechanical and artistic genius in that field which sets him above the majority of men in that line of work. Photography, however, is a latter-day diver- sion of Mr. Eseman. He took it up after he had made a success in business affairs and had gained a competence in the enjoyment of which the majority of men would have been content to spend their
CHARLES ESEMAN
1903
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remaining years. Mr. Eseman was a soldier of the Union during the Civil war, spent many years as a practical railroad man, was a Chicago manufacturer, and for the past fifteen years has had his home in Waupaca.
Charles Eseman was born in Chicago, September 13, 1845, a son of Charles and Dora Eseman. His father was an oldtime railroad man. Both parents were married in Germany and came to America and arrived in Chicago May 14, 1845. Both died in that city, the father in 1864, and the mother in 1890, at the advanced age of eighty-three years. They had three children. One daughter, Minnie, who died in 1891, was the wife of William Knoke.
The boyhood of Charles Eseman was spent in Chicago, where he received a good education at the public schools. What he did not get from books when a boy, he has gained by practical experience and travel and self study. He was young when he entered the employ of the Illinois Central Railroad, beginning as an engine wiper. Through one grade after another he was promoted to locomotive engineer. From the railroad service he enlisted in 1861 in Company C of the Sixty-Second Illinois Infantry. With what was left of that regi- ment in 1864 he re-enlisted, and continued a soldier in the cause of the Union until the end of the struggle. The Sixty-second Illinois was the only regiment to be placed on the roll of honor, because the entire membership of the regiment re-enlisted by the end of its three- years time. Mr. Eseman fought in twenty-six battles, was several times wounded, but came out as he is now, well and strong. Return- ing to work for the railroad, he spent seventeen years altogether in the service of the Illinois Central, and during that time became acquainted with every step of the right-of-way of the road as it then existed. Among his contemporaries in the service of the Illinois Central he is the only survivor from those early times and could tell many illus- trating experiences to illustrate the progress of railroad transporta- tion, since he first rode on a locomotive. After leaving the Illinois Central he was for eight years an engineer on the Burlington road. His next enterprise was the establishment of a mill in Chicago, and he continued that eight years and finally sold out to its present pro- prietor, H. C. Knoke, a nephew of Mr. Eseman. The H. C. Knoke & Company in Chicago are known as "cereal millers," manufacturing a great variety of cereal and vegetable foods, including several choice "Acme" brands of barley, buckwheat flour, farina, rye meal, brick teas, and other commodities of a similar kind. The plant is located at the corner of Halsted & Superior Streets in Chicago.
After his career as a manufacturer, Mr. Eseman retired from all active business for a short time. He had become interested in photog- raphy and spent several years in travel about the county, combin- ing both business and pleasure, hunting. fishing, camping, and pur-
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suing his favorite pastime of photography. It is given to few travelers to see places visited with as expert an eye as Mr. Eseman, and he has almost a complete record of his travels in his collection of pictures. While working in photography he invented an improvement on the camera, which he sold for one thousand dollars to a company now part of the great photographic trust, known as the Eastman Company. Thirteen years ago Mr. Eseman moved to Waupaca, and opened a photographic studio on Main Street, where he does considerable work as a professional photographer, and employs much of his time in experimenting with various devices for the improvement of photo- graphie facilities. In politics he is a strong Republican, and has voted the ticket regularly since the days of Abraham Lincoln. Mr. Eseman has traveled through England, Germany, Ireland, Scotland, Switzerland, and other places.
FRED J. VINE. A resident of Wisconsin since 1864, in which year he migrated from the East, Fred J. Vine, of Crandon, manager of the Crandon Hardware Company, is now one of the best known men in Northern Wisconsin. Since becoming a resident of the state he has been widely known not alone in his personal ventures, but as manager of the Lac dn Flambeau Indian reservation for the United States government. Mr. Vine is a native of Buffalo, New York, and was born November 10, 1844, a son of John and Mary (Chandler) Vine, natives of England who emigrated to the United States shortly after their marriage. The father died Friday, November 8, 1844, and Fred J. Vine was born two days later, and as a consequence never saw his father.
Mr. Vine was reared to sturdy manhood in his native city, by his mother and step-father, George Bates, and after securing an ordinary education in the public schools secured employment as a shipping clerk in a large brick yard. On coming to Wisconsin, in 1864, shortly after his marriage, he located at Neilsville, on the Black river, in Clarke county, where he entered a tract of state land, and to this he added from time to time until he owned over 800 acres, although he has since disposed of a large part of this and now has but 280 acres. Al- though he owned this valuable farming land, he was away from home the greater part of the time, being employed as a logger and cruiser in the woods. Eventually he moved to Lac du Flambeau Indian Reser- vation, in Vilas county, where he had charge of the reservation farm for ten years, having previously had experience in this line at the Net Lake Reservation in Northern Minnesota, where he was located for two years. From 1892 to 1900 he continued in the government service, and resigned his position to enter the employ of the Flambeau Lumber Company.
In 1901, when the Crandon Hardware Company was established by-
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Mr. Vine's son, Arthur Vine, and his son-in-law, Fred Major, Mr. Vine became a silent partner in the business, and it was not until 1904 that he moved to Crandon. In 1909 the business suffered a disastrous fire, but a new plant was immediately erected, a large, handsome brick struc- ture, the largest and most completely equipped of any of its kind in this part of the state, two stories in height, and 52x110 feet in dimen- sions. In addition to light and heavy hardware, the firm deals in im- plements, brick, lime, cement and building supplies, and attracts a trade from all over Forest county. In addition the firm owns con- siderable valuable lumber land in Forest county and during the winter months carries on an extensive business in logging. Mr. Vine is known as one of the solid, substantial and far-seeing business men of his locality. Although he has reached an age when most men consider that they have earned a rest from life's activities, his energetic spirit and progressive nature will not allow him to retire, and with alert step and active brain he still carries on the duties of every-day life. He is still looked to by his associates for counsel and advice and no matter of importance is settled without it. His career has been a long and useful one, both to himself and to his community, for his activities have served to build up and develop in no small manner the section which he adopted in his youth.
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